By Teofilo Garcia, Jr./Philippine News Agency
ZAMBOANGA CITY — The Department of Health (DOH) has called on local government units (LGUs) to take an active role in the campaign against dengue in their respective localities.
Dr. Emilia Monicimpo, DOH-Region 9 director, made the call as she expressed alarm over the increasing number of dengue cases in the region.
Monicimpo said they have recorded 8,076 cases of dengue as of July 6 this year, or 285 percent higher than the 2,067 cases registered in the same period last year.
Data gathered by the DOH regional office showed that Zamboanga City registered 2,662 cases of dengue, the highest compared with other areas in the region.
Zamboanga Sibugay ranked second with 2,566 cases; Zamboanga del Sur, 1,549 cases; Zamboanga del Norte, 1,035; and Isabela City, Basilan, with 264 cases.
So far, the DOH regional office has recorded 48 deaths as of July 6 in the entire region with “most of the deaths were from Zamboanga City.”
Monicimpo said they have already heightened the “4s” campaign in the areas with highest cases to minimize the occurrence of dengue. The 4S strategy means search and destroy, self-protection measures, seek early consultation; and support fogging in times of increasing cases.
Monicimpo said they also provided larvicides and insecticides, as well as space spraying, and distributed insecticide-treated screens to different schools in barangays with high dengue attack rates per surveillance data.
Dengue fever is a viral disease usually affecting infant and young children. Aedes aegypti mosquitoes, which lay eggs on clear and stagnant water, are the main carriers of the disease.
For the latest updates about this story, visit the Philippine News Agency website
